Spicks and Specks
Encyclopedia
Spicks and Specks was an Australian music-themed comedic television quiz show. It aired on ABC1
at 8:30 on Wednesday nights, with the show repeated on Thursdays on ABC2
at 8pm. The previous year's season was repeated every Friday at 2:30 pm on ABC1. It was filmed at ABC Melbourne's
Gordon Street studios.
The show was hosted by stand-up comedian Adam Hills
who posed questions to two teams each headed by a permanent team captain, actor/comedian Alan Brough
and Mildura
-raised radio announcer Myf Warhurst
. They each had two guest panelists, generally one from the world of music and one from comedy. They varied from week to week, but regular guests included Hamish Blake
, Tim Minchin
, Frank Woodley
, Colin Lane
, Ross Noble
, James Morrison
, Renée Geyer
, Ella Hooper
, Meshel Laurie
, Denise Scott
and Dave O'Neil
. Blake appeared more often than any other guest panelist, and his comparative lack of musical knowledge was a running gag.
The overall style employing a mix of music and comedy was similar to the UK TV show Never Mind the Buzzcocks
and fellow Australian TV show Rockwiz
, but the question formats and show style (Satirical vs. Family vs. Pub Quiz
) are different
The show returned for a seventh season on 4 May 2011. On 25 May 2011, it was announced the seventh season would be the final season and the show would end on 23 November 2011.
The final round of each program, The Final Countdown, is devoted to a generic musical quiz. This is a beat the buzzer round, and is the only round in which points are deducted for incorrect responses.
Many of these rounds have proven more popular than others. Substitute was used consistently throughout the early history of the show appearing in almost every episode (although it is now sometimes excluded in favour of Cover Versions occasionally), whereas some are only used every now and then and others used much less. Some other segments which proved to be popular early in the show's history but have been used less or even abandoned later in the season: Musician or Serial Killer and Bottom 100 were both commonly used early in 2005, but are rarely seen today. Some games have also been introduced more recently, whilst others have been around since the show started in 2005, and occasionally a game will be temporarily changed in some way (e.g. Musician Or Serial Killer was changed once to ARIA winner or Audience Member on the ARIA special episode).
Despite points being awarded for each round, there are no prizes for the winners, except on rare occasions where Hills decides to award some convenient prop for comedic effect – a "Fools' Gold" sandwich
identical to that eaten by Elvis, for example.
Other notable guests have included Meat Loaf
, Jane Badler
, Richard O'Brien
, Stephen Schwartz
, Lorna Luft
, Darlene Love
, Jamie Cullum
, "Weird Al" Yankovic
, among others.
took a tour through the studios and dressing rooms of the ABC
studios in Elsternwick
and conducting interviews with show personnel.
which are rented by ABV-2
With ABC Studios in Ripponlea getting ready to shut down, new home is now at ABC Melbourne studios in Southbank, Victoria
. With the move from Ripponlea also comes a move from ABC as the broadcast provider. It is recorded in front of a live audience of 500 people.
" by The Bee Gees. The episode also included returning guests Ella Hooper, Hamish Blake, Paul Grabowsky and Meshel Laurie. The questions covered 200 years of music from 1809 to 2009.
In each case, questions are written, and some games are changed slightly or new games invented, to suit the theme.
, a duo consisting of Silverchair
singer Daniel Johns
and dance musician Paul Mac
, and replaces all the lyrics bar the title refrain with scat singing
. In addition, Mac once appeared on the show as a panelist.
ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
at 8:30 on Wednesday nights, with the show repeated on Thursdays on ABC2
ABC2
ABC2 is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 7 March 2005, it is the responsibility of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television division, and is available nationally to digital television viewers in Australia...
at 8pm. The previous year's season was repeated every Friday at 2:30 pm on ABC1. It was filmed at ABC Melbourne's
ABV (TV station)
ABV is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television station in Melbourne, Victoria. The station began broadcasting on 19 November 1956 and is transmitted throughout the state via a network of relay transmitters and also ABV is the second television station in Victoria with HSV-7 which...
Gordon Street studios.
The show was hosted by stand-up comedian Adam Hills
Adam Hills
Adam Hills is an Australian comedian and television presenter. He has appeared on Australian and British television and is best known for his role hosting the Australian ABC music trivia show Spicks and Specks...
who posed questions to two teams each headed by a permanent team captain, actor/comedian Alan Brough
Alan Brough
Alan Brough is a New Zealand actor and comedian.Brough worked as an actor in Wellington and Auckland, mainly in live theatre...
and Mildura
Mildura, Victoria
Mildura is a regional city in northwestern Victoria, Australia and seat of the Rural City of Mildura local government area. It is located in the Sunraysia region, and is on the banks of the Murray River. The current population is estimated at just over 30,000.Mildura is a major agricultural centre...
-raised radio announcer Myf Warhurst
Myf Warhurst
Myfanwy "Myf" Warhurst is an Australian radio announcer and television personality, best known for her work at Triple J and on ABC Television's music-themed quiz show Spicks and Specks. Before her career as a radio announcer and TV personality, she was editor-in-chief of Melbourne street press...
. They each had two guest panelists, generally one from the world of music and one from comedy. They varied from week to week, but regular guests included Hamish Blake
Hamish Blake
Hamish Donald Blake is an Australian comedian, actor, author and bodybuilder from Melbourne, Australia. Since 2003, he has worked with Andy Lee as part of the comedy duo Hamish and Andy. The pair have performed live and on television and radio, most notably with their drive-time radio program...
, Tim Minchin
Tim Minchin
Timothy David "Tim" Minchin is a British-Australian comedian, actor, and musician.Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia,...
, Frank Woodley
Frank Woodley
Frank Woodley is an Australian comedian who is best known for his work alongside Colin Lane as part of the comedic duo, Lano and Woodley. The two performed together for almost 20 years in live shows, a television series and an album of comedic songs, before deciding to pursue individual careers...
, Colin Lane
Colin Lane
Colin Stuart Lane is a comedian and actor, best known for being one-half of former comedy duo, Lano and Woodley.-Lano and Woodley:...
, Ross Noble
Ross Noble
Ross Markham Noble is an English stand-up comedian, brought up in Cramlington, Northumberland, England.Noble rose to mainstream popularity through making appearances on British television, particularly interviews and on celebrity quiz shows such as Have I Got News for You...
, James Morrison
James Morrison (musician)
James Morrison AM is an Australian jazz musician who plays numerous instruments, but is best known for his trumpet playing...
, Renée Geyer
Renée Geyer
Renée Rebecca Geyer is an Australian singer who has long been regarded as one of the finest exponents of jazz, soul and R&B idioms. She had commercial success as a solo artist in Australia, with "It's a Man's Man's World", "Heading in the Right Direction" and "Stares and Whispers" in the 1970s and...
, Ella Hooper
Ella Hooper
Ella Keighery Hooper is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter. Hooper is the lead singer of Killing Heidi, which she has fronted, with her older brother Jesse Hooper, since its formation in 1996...
, Meshel Laurie
Meshel Laurie
Meshel Laurie is an Australian comedian and radio-television personality. She was born in Toowoomba, Queensland.Laurie moved to Melbourne early in her career as a stand-up comic to take advantage of its strong comedy industry/community. Her first Melbourne International Comedy Festival show was...
, Denise Scott
Denise Scott
Denise Margaret Adelaide Scott is a Melbourne-based stand-up comedian, actor and radio personality.-Career:She has appeared frequently on Australian television since her regular slot on ABC TV's The Big Gig in 1990, and a weekly segment on Tonight Live with Steve Vizard...
and Dave O'Neil
Dave O'Neil
Dave O'Neil is a Melbourne-based stand-up comedian, actor, writer and radio personality.-Early career:Dave was a Cub, Scout, Venturer and Rover. His father Kevin is still the Group Leader at the 1st/3rd Mitcham Scout Group....
. Blake appeared more often than any other guest panelist, and his comparative lack of musical knowledge was a running gag.
The overall style employing a mix of music and comedy was similar to the UK TV show Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two...
and fellow Australian TV show Rockwiz
RocKwiz
RocKwiz is an Australian television quiz show series, focused on rock music, and broadcast on SBS One. It premiered in 2005.-Summary:The forty minute program airs on Saturday at 9:20 pm, and is hosted by Julia Zemiro. It is shot in The Gershwin Room at St Kilda's Esplanade Hotel, commonly...
, but the question formats and show style (Satirical vs. Family vs. Pub Quiz
Pub quiz
A pub quiz is a quiz held in a public house. These events are also called Quiz Nights or Trivia Nights and may be held in other settings. Pub quizzes are still extremely popular and may attract people to a pub who are not found there on other days. The pub quiz is a modern example of a pub game...
) are different
The show returned for a seventh season on 4 May 2011. On 25 May 2011, it was announced the seventh season would be the final season and the show would end on 23 November 2011.
Games
The show sticks to a simple quiz-show format, with host Hills asking the teams varying music-themed questions. Some rounds are played on an "open-to-all" basis, i.e. both teams can answer the questions, but in most rounds each team gets their own questions to answer – although the other team may answer the question if the first team doesn't know it. Scores are kept, but the prize for the winners is simply personal satisfaction. Regular segments include:- Know Your Product, where each team chooses one of four given topics – three questions around this topic are then asked which either team can answer. The questions are usually ordered by points allocated and the number of answers needed. (eg. first question is worth one point, but only one answer is needed, the second question is worth two points and requires two answers, and the final question is worth three marks and has three answers). This game is played first in every episode. In special episodes the topic is the show's theme which has 5 questions of which the 4th & 5th questions have 4 & 5 answers respectively.
- Substitute, where one panellist from each team sings three well-known tunes, substituting words from a text provided by Hills. This is usually a technical manual or some kind of text humorous given the context (texts used have included "Datsun 180B Service Manual", "2004 Australian Government Tax Pack" and "A guide to Yabbie Farming"). The other panellists of that team then guess the songs. This game is loosely based on One Song To The Tune Of AnotherOne Song To The Tune Of Another"One Song to the Tune of Another" was the first game played on the BBC Radio 4 comedy panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue and is still almost always played every other episode. It consists of panellists singing the lyrics of one song to the tune of another song, accompanied on the piano.The four...
from the BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't A ClueI'm Sorry I Haven't a ClueI'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, sometimes abbreviated to ISIHAC or Clue, is a BBC radio comedy panel game broadcast since 11 April 1972 at the rate of one or two series each year , transmitted on BBC Radio 4, with occasional repeats on BBC Radio 4 Extra and the BBC's World Service...
and Adam Hills' own minor hit with Working Class Anthem, in which he sang the lyrics of the Australian National Anthem to the tune of Jimmy Barnes's Working Class Man.
- Cover Versions in which one contestant is chosen to draw a picture (in silence), representing either a song title or an album cover, as their panel attempts to guess which song it is. Contestants are not allowed to use words or numbers.
- Samplemania/Videomania, where five or six songs/music video clips are edited into one short 30-second clip. Players must identify the different songs/videos in the clip after they have all been played, and are not allowed to take notes.
- Turning Japanese in which the lyrics of well-known song are translated into Japanese using an online web translator. The lyrics are then translated back into English using the same translator. Contestants must guess the title of the song the mismatched lyrics are from.
- Please Please Tell Me Now, in which Hills presents part of a music video clip, and the teams must answer questions about the video.
- Musician or Serial Killer, in which in early episodes each panellist and then in later episodes each team is shown a photograph and asked to choose whether the subject is a musician or a serial killer.
- Sir Mix'n'Matchalot, where each team is given three famous people and three facts about each of these people. They have to match the fact with the correct person.
- Bottom 100 in which Hills provides each team with a choice of two awful songs and asks them to determine which was rated worst by a given group or list.
- Can't Buy Me, Love in which Adam reads out three celebrity themed items that have been found on eBay (eg. A tour jacket, keychain with artist/band name). Some of these items are the usual merchandise, while others are down-right weird. The teams are then asked to place each item in order from cheapest to the most expensive.
- Common People in which the teams identify the commonality between three musicians.
- Malvern Stars on 45 in which a single contestant rides a bicycle which powers a record player. The speed each record plays at is determined by the speed at which the contestant pedals. The contestant must continue to ride until their panel correctly guesses as many songs as possible in the time limit.
- Mondegreens – which are misinterpreted song lyrics – is where the contestants are asked to guess which song contains the mistaken lyrics.
- Looking for Clues, where teams have to guess the name of a band from a cryptic clue given by Hills.
- Look What They've Done... (To My Song Ma!), where song clips have been changed and the players must identify the tracks. Most commonly, a guest artist or group is used to play the tracks in a different style from the original, however the songs have also been played through headphones played to maximum volume, through ringtones, over the top of each other, etc.
- Something's Missing, where the teams are shown album covers with an item or word blanked out, and they must identify the missing item.
- One out of Three Ain't Bad, where teams are given a relatively obscure musical story and are presented with three possible endings. Teams must select the true ending to the story.
- Word Up, in which teams are given five random words from the lyrics of a song, and they must then identify the song.
- You're The Voices, where a member of each team must stand next to the opposite team & sing a song from a book (by only singing la la la). The first team to get their member's song correct wins a point.
- All Shook Up, in which each team is shown a series of anagrams of musicians' names (eg "Bomb Early" – "Bob Marley"), and they have to unscramble the anagram. If nobody guesses the anagram immediately, Hills will give a clue.
- Two Little Words, where one member of each team is blind-folded by wearing the Spicks Specs and the others are given the name of a musician or band. The two other team members must get their team mate to guess correctly which musician they are given using only one one-word clue each. An example used by Adam Hills is Kylie MinogueKylie MinogueKylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, where one team member might say "Hot" and the other might say "Pants", or "Singing" – "Budgie".
- Counting the Beat, where one member of each team plays songs on a keyboard while the others try to guess the song. Keyboardists are given a list of numbers corresponding to the order in which they should play the notes, but are given no indication of the rhythm in which they should be played. Introduced in 2008.
- I'll Jumble For Ya, where one team member is given thirty seconds to correctly match ten song titles divided in half and mixed up on a magnetic board.
- Step Back in Time, where songs are played backwards and must be identified by the teams.
The final round of each program, The Final Countdown, is devoted to a generic musical quiz. This is a beat the buzzer round, and is the only round in which points are deducted for incorrect responses.
Many of these rounds have proven more popular than others. Substitute was used consistently throughout the early history of the show appearing in almost every episode (although it is now sometimes excluded in favour of Cover Versions occasionally), whereas some are only used every now and then and others used much less. Some other segments which proved to be popular early in the show's history but have been used less or even abandoned later in the season: Musician or Serial Killer and Bottom 100 were both commonly used early in 2005, but are rarely seen today. Some games have also been introduced more recently, whilst others have been around since the show started in 2005, and occasionally a game will be temporarily changed in some way (e.g. Musician Or Serial Killer was changed once to ARIA winner or Audience Member on the ARIA special episode).
Despite points being awarded for each round, there are no prizes for the winners, except on rare occasions where Hills decides to award some convenient prop for comedic effect – a "Fools' Gold" sandwich
Fool's Gold Loaf
Fool's Gold Loaf is a sandwich made by the Colorado Mine Company, a five-star restaurant in Denver, Colorado. The sandwich consists of a single warmed, hollowed-out loaf of bread filled with one jar of creamy peanut butter, one jar of grape jelly, and a pound of bacon. The name of the sandwich is...
identical to that eaten by Elvis, for example.
Notable Guests
Spicks and Specks has had many recurring Australian guests such asOther notable guests have included Meat Loaf
Meat Loaf
Michael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...
, Jane Badler
Jane Badler
Jane Badler is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Diana, the chief antagonist in NBC's science fiction TV series, V, between 1983-85. Badler also appeared in ABC's "reimagined" version of V in 2011, again playing an alien named Diana, who this time is the mother of...
, Richard O'Brien
Richard O'Brien
Richard Timothy Smith , better known under his stage name Richard O'Brien, is an English writer, actor, television presenter and theatre performer. He is perhaps best known for writing the cult musical The Rocky Horror Show and for his role in presenting the popular TV show The Crystal Maze...
, Stephen Schwartz
Stephen Schwartz
Stephen Schwartz may refer to:*Stephen Schwartz , American musical theater and film lyricist and composer*Stephen Suleyman Schwartz , journalist, political author, and historian...
, Lorna Luft
Lorna Luft
Lorna Luft is an American television, stage, and film actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and Sid Luft, and the half-sister of singer and actress Liza Minnelli.-Biography:...
, Darlene Love
Darlene Love
Darlene Love is an American popular music singer and actress. She gained prominence in the 1960s for the song "He's a Rebel," a #1 American single in 1962, and was part of the Phil Spector stable that produced a celebrated Christmas album in 1963....
, Jamie Cullum
Jamie Cullum
Jamie Cullum is an English pop and jazz-pop singer-songwriter. Though he is primarily a vocalist/pianist he also accompanies himself on other instruments including guitar and drums. Since April 2010, he has been presenting a weekly jazz show on BBC Radio 2, broadcast on Tuesdays from 19:00.- Early...
, "Weird Al" Yankovic
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...
, among others.
A Very Specky Christmas
Since 2005, an annual hour-long Christmas episode, entitled "A Very Specky Christmas" or variations thereof, has been screened on the Sunday night before Christmas. All questions are either about Christmas songs, or music from the previous year. While these episodes remain true to the standard format with three members on each team, adaptions are made to allow more guest stars to appear. Additional or notably different games have included:- Mistletoss, a physical challenge in which the teams are required to throw Christmas presents into a goal in a given time limit. In 2005, the teams threw CDs into the chimney of a model house; in 2006, wrapped gifts were thrown into celebrities' Christmas stockings of different sizes; in 2007, wrapped gifts were thrown through the windows of a "rehab clinic" with a guard out the front, Frank WoodleyFrank WoodleyFrank Woodley is an Australian comedian who is best known for his work alongside Colin Lane as part of the comedic duo, Lano and Woodley. The two performed together for almost 20 years in live shows, a television series and an album of comedic songs, before deciding to pursue individual careers...
. - Sir Mix'n'Matchalot is adapted so that three additional celebrities appear and are arbitrarily given Christmas presents by the show. The panel then asks questions and attempts to allocate the presents.
- Substitute is adapted so that trained choirs sing the tunes of Christmas songs with the words from famous quotes and works from the past year, such as controversial pieces of legislation, political speeches, or pop culture.
Best Of
As the last episode of each year, Spicks and Specks reflects back on all the highlights, lowlights and memorable guests throughout the year.100th episode
On 30 May 2007, Spicks and Specks celebrated its 100th episode. Instead of the show being divided into rounds, teams were asked 100 questions – one from each of the previous 99 episodes, and one new question, "What is the last question on our 100th episode?" which was correctly answered: "What is the last question on our 100th episode." by Antoinette Halloran. Alan Brough's team was victorious although it did come down to the very last question.Behind the scenes
This was the first episode of Spicks and Specks where the game is not played at all. Instead, this behind the scenes special hosted by regular contestant Hamish BlakeHamish Blake
Hamish Donald Blake is an Australian comedian, actor, author and bodybuilder from Melbourne, Australia. Since 2003, he has worked with Andy Lee as part of the comedy duo Hamish and Andy. The pair have performed live and on television and radio, most notably with their drive-time radio program...
took a tour through the studios and dressing rooms of the ABC
ABV (TV station)
ABV is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television station in Melbourne, Victoria. The station began broadcasting on 19 November 1956 and is transmitted throughout the state via a network of relay transmitters and also ABV is the second television station in Victoria with HSV-7 which...
studios in Elsternwick
Elsternwick, Victoria
Elsternwick is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Glen Eira...
and conducting interviews with show personnel.
Production studio
The show was filmed at ABC Studios in Elsternwick, VictoriaElsternwick, Victoria
Elsternwick is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Glen Eira...
which are rented by ABV-2
With ABC Studios in Ripponlea getting ready to shut down, new home is now at ABC Melbourne studios in Southbank, Victoria
Southbank, Victoria
Southbank is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia located direct south of the Yarra River opposite Melbourne's Hoddle Grid. The northernmost area is considered part of the Central Business District and Central Activities District of the city. Its Local Government Area are the...
. With the move from Ripponlea also comes a move from ABC as the broadcast provider. It is recorded in front of a live audience of 500 people.
200th episode
On 9 September 2009, Spicks and Specks celebrated its 200th episode. The show had a number of members from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra behind the hosts, who performed the shows many musical questions including the theme song "Spicks and SpecksSpicks and Specks (song)
"Spicks and Specks" is a song by The Bee Gees .An instrumental version of the song is part of the soundtrack for Melody, which also featured several other Bee Gees songs.-Live performances:...
" by The Bee Gees. The episode also included returning guests Ella Hooper, Hamish Blake, Paul Grabowsky and Meshel Laurie. The questions covered 200 years of music from 1809 to 2009.
The Finale
A one hour special, called "The Finale", was the final episode of Spicks and Specks, and went to air on 23 November, 2011. There was a change to the list of guests: various guests rotated during different rounds of the show. All of the guest appearances on the show, credited, were Ella Hooper, Geoffrey Rush, Scott Edgar, Dave O'Neil, Rhonda Burchmore, Adam Richard, Darren Hayes, Brian Cadd, Brian Mannix, Felicity Ward, Amanda Keller, Jimeoin, Tommy Dean, Shane Bourne, Dan Sultan, Richard Gill, Antoinette Halloran, Denise Scott, Peter Helliar, Barry Morgan, Megan Washington, Damian Callinan, Hamish Blake, Andy Lee, Uncanny X-Men.Other specials
Special episodes have been compiled for various seasonal or arbitrary themes, including:- Halloween (dubbed Spicks and Spooks)
- ARIA Hall of Fame inductees
- Children's music
- Music from films (dubbed Spicks and Flicks)
- Mother's Day
- Australia vs New Zealand
- 50s
- 60s
- 70s
- 80s
- Britannia Special
- Australiana Special
- Americana Special
- Europa Special
- Comedy Special
In each case, questions are written, and some games are changed slightly or new games invented, to suit the theme.
Theme and titles
The show takes both its name and theme music from The Bee Gees' 1966 song, "Spicks and Specks". The theme music is performed and produced by The DissociativesThe Dissociatives
The Dissociatives are an Australian band consisting of Daniel Johns of Silverchair, Australian dance producer DJ Paul Mac, and touring members Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes from Sydney electronic duo "The Presets"...
, a duo consisting of Silverchair
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Merewether, Newcastle with the line-up of Ben Gillies on drums, Chris Joannou on bass guitar and Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo...
singer Daniel Johns
Daniel Johns
Daniel Paul Johns is an Australian musician, vocalist, composer, guitarist, and pianist, best known as the frontman of the rock band Silverchair. He is also part of The Dissociatives...
and dance musician Paul Mac
Paul Mac
Paul Mac is a musician, producer and music remixer from Sydney, Australia. He was classically trained at Sydney's Conservatorium of Music. Paul Mac formed the bands Smash Mac Mac, Itch-e And Scratch-e, The Lab, and The Dissociatives, as well as releasing two records under his own name...
, and replaces all the lyrics bar the title refrain with scat singing
Scat singing
In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. Scat singing gives singers the ability to sing improvised melodies and rhythms, to create the equivalent of an instrumental solo using their voice.- Structure and syllable choice...
. In addition, Mac once appeared on the show as a panelist.